2016 ICF Global Coaching Study

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

2016 ICF Global Coaching Study

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Disclaimer and Copyright

NOTE: The figures presented in this report are based on survey responses and therefore rely on the accuracy of the data provided by
the survey respondents.
This document contains proprietary information of the International Coach Federation (ICF). No disclosure or use of any
portion of the contents of this material may be made without the express written consent of ICF. For permission to reproduce
any material contained in this publication, please email your request to icfpr@coachfederation.org or call +1.859.219.3580. If
consent is granted, attribution to ICF and to PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP should be made. All rights reserved. Copyright 2016.

International Coach Federation

2016 ICF Global Coaching Study: Executive Summary

Introduction
This is a summary of the findings from the 2016 ICF Global Coaching Study. The study was commissioned in 2015 by the
International Coach Federation (ICF) and undertaken by PricewaterhouseCoopers.
This represents the third iteration of ICFs research on the size and scope of the coaching profession. Since the publication
of the benchmarking and follow-up study in 2007 and 2012, respectively, the coaching profession has continued to evolve.
Moreover, as a growing number of individuals and organizations have adopted coaching, the use of coaching skills and
approaches has expanded beyond professionally trained coach practitioners to include managers, leaders, and human
resources and talent development professionals who apply these competencies in their daily workplace interactions.
In this context, the 2016 Global Coaching Study represents ICFs most ambitious, extensive and expansive industry research
effort to date, capturing insights from professional coach practitioners and managers/leaders using coaching skills across
the globe.

International Coach Federation

2016 ICF Global Coaching Study: Executive Summary

The Survey Process

The survey was launched online in July 2015 and was available in nine languages:
English
French
German
Italian
Japanese
Korean
Mandarin
Portuguese
Spanish
A number of tactics were implemented to engage worldwide with coach practitioners and managers/leaders using coaching
skills, including:
Sending personalized email invitations and survey links to current ICF Members and Credential-holders, individuals with
expired ICF Memberships, and business leads obtained through ICFs strategic alliances with business and professional
organizations, including the Association for Talent Development (ATD), Human Capital Institute (HCI) and Society for
Human Resource Management (SHRM)
Sending email invitations and survey links to individuals who had participated in previous iterations of the study and
expressed their willingness to do so again in the future
Inviting ICF Members to forward a generic link to the online survey registration site to their professional network to initiate
a snowball effect
An email and social media campaign encouraging ICF Chapter Leaders worldwide to promote the survey in
their communities
Designing the survey to be completed using a range of mobile devices
Issuing email reminders to contacts whod not yet completed the survey, as well as new, monthly emails to coaches who
joined ICF after the survey launch
Promoting the survey with coaches who attended local, regional and global ICF events
Additionally, several other professional coaching bodies also offered to deliver messages directly to their own members inviting
them to participate in the study. Our deepest gratitude must be offered to the following organizations:
Association for Coaching (AC)
Association of Coach Training Organizations (ACTO)
European Mentoring and Coaching Council (EMCC)
Graduate School Alliance for Executive Coaching (GSAEC)
International Association of Coaching (IAC)
World Business Executive Coaches Summit (WBECS)

International Coach Federation

2016 ICF Global Coaching Study: Executive Summary

Survey Outcomes
With 15,380 valid survey responses from 137 countries, the 2016 ICF Global Coaching Study represents ICFs largest, most
ambitious industry research project to date. (The 2012 ICF Global Coaching Study yielded 12,133 responses from 117 countries.)
Forty countries achieved 100-plus survey responses each, qualifying leaders of their ICF Chapters to receive access to
customized survey data presented via an online data reporting platform. Also crossing the 100-plus response threshold were:
18 U.S. states
Four Canadian provinces
Two regions in the United Kingdom
Three Australian territories

The response from non-ICF Members further attests to the success of efforts to promote the survey widely. In total, 5,867 valid
responses were submitted by non-ICF Members, representing 38% of the total number of completed surveys. By comparison,
non-ICF Members accounted for 36% of valid responses in the 2012 study.

International Coach Federation

2016 ICF Global Coaching Study: Executive Summary

An Updated Survey Design

The questionnaire for the 2016 study is very similar to the instrument employed for the 2012 ICF Global Coaching Study,
facilitating comparisons across a wide range of topics.
The most significant change was made to the screening question posed at the beginning of the questionnaire. For the 2012
study, respondents were screened in for the purposes of the survey if they answered yes to the following question: Are you a
professional coach?
In order to obtain indicative profiling information on managers/leaders using coaching skills, a two-stage approach was
adopted for the 2016 study. Similar to the 2012 study, respondents were first asked if they considered themselves to be a
professional coach. In a follow-up question, respondents were asked to select which of the following best describes what they
primarily do:
External coach practitioner
Internal coach practitioner
Both an external coach practitioner and an internal coach practitioner
No longer coaching at this time and do not plan to coach in the future
A human resources/talent development manager/director who uses coaching skills
A manager/leader who uses coaching skills
None of the above
No further questions were asked of those responding none of the above. The remaining identifiers were used to classify
respondents into two broad categories: coach practitioners and managers/leaders using coaching skills.

International Coach Federation

2016 ICF Global Coaching Study: Executive Summary

The Coaching Continuum

In estimating the size and scope of the coaching profession, the 2012 ICF Global Coaching Study adopted a binary view based on
how respondents answered the question, Are you a professional coach? However, as a growing number of individuals and
organizations apply coaching approaches and skills outside the context of traditional coaching engagements, this binary view is
no longer sufficient.
The term coaching continuum accounts for a wider range of modalities in which coaching approaches and competencies
may be applied. On one side of the continuum are managers and leaders who apply coaching skills and approaches in the
workplace. The type and extent of training that these individuals receive may vary dramatically. On the other end are trained,
professional coach practitioners, most of whom derive or have derived a portion of their annual income from their work as an
internal or external coach.
Although it is possible for an individual to exist at multiple points on the coaching continuum (e.g., someone may use coaching
skills and approaches in her role as an organizations director of HR and operate a part-time business as an external coach
practitioner), for the purposes of this study respondents were classified according to the modality they said fit them best.

How respondents self-identified themselves:

External Coach Internal Coach Both an External

Practitioner
Practitioner
and Internal
Coach
Practitioner

Coach Practitioners

Human Resources/
Talent Development
Manger/Director Who
Uses Coaching Skills

Manager/Leader
Who Uses
Coaching Skills

Managers/Leaders
Using Coaching Skills

Size and Scope

A key objective for the study was to determine estimates of coaching revenue by type of coaching, geographical region and
global total. In order to determine these revenue figures, it is first necessary to make some assumptions about the number of
coaches that there are in the world.
Currently, there is not an accepted, globally inclusive list of individuals on the coaching continuum. Consequently, it was
necessary to estimate the number of coaches, both globally and by region, using a combination of known total ICF Membership
numbers combined with estimated membership numbers of other organizations and survey responses, based on a
membership ratio method. This methodology is fully outlined in the Technical Appendix of the Final Report.
From the available data, it is hereby estimated that there are presently approximately 53,300 professional coach
practitioners worldwide. Western Europe accounts for the largest share (35%), followed closely by North America, with an
estimated 33% share.
Applying the membership ratio method to the survey results yields an estimated 10,900 managers/leaders using coaching
skills. This estimate should be viewed as strictly indicative and subject to a higher level of uncertainty than the figures for
coach practitioners.

International Coach Federation

2016 ICF Global Coaching Study: Executive Summary

Coach practitioners and managers/leaders using coaching skills: Estimates by world region
Coach
practitioners

Managers/
leaders using
coaching skills

Coaching
continuum

North America

17,500

3,100

20,600

Latin America and the Caribbean

4,000

1,000

5,000

Western Europe

18,800

2,700

21,400

Eastern Europe

4,500

1,500

6,000

Middle East and Africa

2,400

700

3,100

Asia

3,700

1,500

5,200

Oceania

2,400

400

2,800

Global

53,300

10,900

64,100

NOTE: Estimates are shown to the nearest 100. Therefore, subtotals may not add to the total figures.

Ninety percent of coach practitioners said they currently have active clients. The proportion of coach practitioners with active
clients was highest in the established regions of North America (92%), Oceania (91%) and Western Europe (91%).

International Coach Federation

2016 ICF Global Coaching Study: Executive Summary

Age Profile

Coach practitioners who responded to the survey are almost equally split between those under age 50 (46%) and those age 50
and over (54%). Almost one in five coach practitioners (19%) are in the 5054 age range, and a little more than half of coaches
are between 45 and 59 years of age.

The age profile of managers/leaders using coaching skills skews toward younger age groups. Almost half are under 45 years of
age. The proportion of managers/leaders using coaching skills who are under age 40 is almost twice that of coach practitioners
(28% versus 15%).

Gender

Females account for 67% of coach practitioners and 66% of managers/leaders using coaching skills. Regionally, the female
share of coach practitioners is highest in North America and lower in emerging markets. The regional pattern among
managers/leaders using coaching skills is broadly similar to coach practitioners.

International Coach Federation

2016 ICF Global Coaching Study: Executive Summary

Income and Revenue

Coach practitioners with active clients were asked to provide their annual income generated by coaching only. Respondents
provided annual revenue data in a total of 73 different currencies.
In order to provide a common reference point, the revenue figures were converted to U.S. dollars (USD) based on international
exchange rates published by the World Bank. When calculated in U.S. dollars, average revenues are highest in the high-income
regions of North America, Western Europe and Oceania.
However, it should be remembered that while revenue data has been provided in one currency, the value of the amounts
quoted in individual countries must be contextualized in terms of Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) and diverse standards of living.
This subject is explored in greater detail in the Final Report.
Both globally and within each world region, there is considerable variation in annual revenues earned from coaching.

Average annual revenue/income, USD Average

USD
North America

$61,900

Latin America and the Caribbean

$27,100

Western Europe

$55,300

Eastern Europe

$18,400

Middle East and Africa

$35,900

Asia

$37,800

Oceania

$73,100

Global

$51,000

Average income from coaching estimates for 2015 can be compared with the 2011 figures published in the 2012 ICF Global
Coaching Study. The comparison in terms of U.S. dollars indicates modest growth of 6% from 20112015.
For each of the seven world regions, total revenue from coaching was derived by combining the regional estimate for active
coaches with average annual revenues from coaching. On that basis, the estimated global total revenue from coaching in 2015
was $2.356 billion USD, representing a 19% increase over the 2011 estimate.

Total annual revenue from coaching

USD (million)

% of global share

% change
2011-2015

North America

$955

40.6

35.2

Latin America and the Caribbean

$92

3.9

26.6

Western Europe

$898

38.1

8.5

Eastern Europe

$70

3.0

1.4

Middle East and Africa

$73

3.1

7.1

Asia

$113

4.8

18.8

Oceania

$154

6.5

10.4

Global

$2,356

100.0

19.0

NOTE: Percent change figures calculated from unrounded estimates. Some respondents, mainly internal coaches, quotes zero annual
incomes. They comprised 3.7% of coaches giving an annual revenue figure. The grossed-up results are adjusted for those responses.

International Coach Federation

2016 ICF Global Coaching Study: Executive Summary

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Across the range of business/practice indicators, coach practitioners are looking forward to the next 12 months
with confidence.
Three out of four coach practitioners with active clients (75%) said they expect their number of coaching clients to increase over
the next 12 months. A similar proportion (75%) said they anticipate an increase in annual revenue from coaching. More than six
in 10 (63%) said they expect their number of coaching sessions to increase.
Coach practitioners are somewhat less confident in an increase in average fees (45%). However, very few coach practitioners
(2%) said they expect average fees to decline.

International Coach Federation

2016 ICF Global Coaching Study: Executive Summary

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Training and Credentialing

Mirroring 2012s findings, the 2016 study demonstrates the high value professional coach practitioners place on training and
credentialing. This expanded research also reveals that managers/leaders using coaching skills place a similarly high premium
on these markers of professionalism.

Training

Almost all coach practitioners (99%) reported receiving some form of coach-specific training, with a large majority (89%)
receiving training that was accredited or approved by a professional coaching organization.
The receipt of coach-specific training was also very high among managers/leaders using coaching skills, with 93% reporting that
they have received training. Almost three in four (73%) reported receiving accredited or approved coach-specific training.

Among coach practitioners who reported receiving coach-specific training, more than two in three (68%) have completed 125plus hours of coach-specific training.
Fewer managers/leaders said they had received 125-plus hours of coach-specific training (42%). However, almost one in four
managers/leaders using coaching skills (23%) reported receiving 200-plus hours of training.

International Coach Federation

2016 ICF Global Coaching Study: Executive Summary

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Credentialing

A large majority of coach practitioners and managers/leaders using coaching skills agreed that individuals or organizations
using coaching expect their coaches to be certified or credentialed.

International Coach Federation

2016 ICF Global Coaching Study: Executive Summary

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A majority of coach practitioners said they currently hold a credential or certification from a professional coaching organization,
with 51% of coach practitioners reporting that they hold an ICF Credential.
More than half of managers/leaders using coaching skills said they do not hold any certification or credential from a
professional coaching organization. However, one in four reported holding an ICF Credential, with 20% reporting credentials
from other international, regional and/or national associations.
It should be noted that the sample proportions for certifications and credentials partly reflect the role of ICFs Member and
Credential-holder database in conducting the survey.

NOTE: The figures shown in the chart add up to more than 100 percent because some respondents may be members of more than
one of the organization types listed.

International Coach Federation

2016 ICF Global Coaching Study: Executive Summary

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Coaching Clients
Coach practitioners were asked several questions regarding the attributes of the clients they serve.

Position Held by Clients

When asked to identify the positions held by all of their clients, two in three practitioners said they coach managers, followed
by executives, business owners/entrepreneurs, personal clients, team leaders, staff members and miscellaneous others. On
average, respondents mentioned three positions.

Coach practitioners were also asked to identify the position held by the majority of their clients. Managers were
mentioned most frequently (29%). Almost one in four (23%) said they mainly coached executives, with a further 19%
selecting personal clients.
The pattern of majority client positions is very similar to the results reported in 2012, both in terms of the frequency and rank
order of positions. However, it should be noted that the miscellaneous other category was introduced for the 2016 study;
hence, precise percentage figures should be compared with caution.

International Coach Federation

2016 ICF Global Coaching Study: Executive Summary

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Primary and Sponsored Clients

Coach practitioners were asked what proportion of their clients pay for their own coaching (primary clients) and what
proportion have coaching paid for by a third party (sponsored clients). Globally, the majority of clients are sponsored.
Compared to 2011, the sponsored share has increased by two percentage points, from 51 to 53%.

International Coach Federation

2016 ICF Global Coaching Study: Executive Summary

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Gender of Clients

Females continue to account for the majority of coaches clients. At 54% the female share of coaches clients is unchanged from
2011. The regional pattern in client proportions by gender also remained stable between 2011 and 2015.

The gender share varies with the main specialty of the coach practitioner.

International Coach Federation

2016 ICF Global Coaching Study: Executive Summary

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Age of Clients

Coach practitioners were asked to indicate the proportion of their active clients falling within a series of age bands. Their
responses indicate that, on average, 60% of clients are under age 45.

When compared with 2011, the 2015 results indicate a shift in the age composition of clients toward older age groups.
Notwithstanding the increase in the proportion of clients aged 45-plus, it remains the case that the age profile of clients tends
to be younger in the emerging regions.

International Coach Federation

2016 ICF Global Coaching Study: Executive Summary

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Future Trends
Respondents were invited to share their insights into obstacles and opportunities facing the profession over the next 12
months and their views on the extent to which coaching is able to influence social change.

Future Obstacles

When asked to identify the biggest obstacle for coaching over the next 12 months, the main concern expressed by coach
practitioners was untrained individuals who call themselves coaches. The concerns expressed by coach practitioners echo the
responses published in the 2012 study. The responses of managers/leaders using coaching skills aligned closely with those of
coach practitioners, suggesting a common shared understanding of the obstacles facing coaching in the next 12 months.

Future Opportunities

When asked to identify the greatest opportunity for coaching over the next 12 months, coach practitioners were most likely
to identify increased awareness of the benefits of coaching. When compared with responses published in the 2012 study, the
ranking of opportunities by coach practitioners has changed little. Also of note is the alignment between the views of coach
practitioners and managers/leaders using coaching skills.

International Coach Federation

2016 ICF Global Coaching Study: Executive Summary

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Influencing Social Change

Respondents were asked to indicate the extent to which they think coaching is able to influence social change. More than
one in two coach practitioners believe to a large extent that coaching is able to influence social change. There is substantial
agreement between coach practitioners and managers/leaders using coaching skills on that topic.

The extent to which coach practitioners say that coaching is able to influence social change varies considerably by region. Two
in three coaches in Latin America and the Caribbean (68%) and the Middle East and Africa (66%) believe to a large extent that
coaching is able to influence social change.

International Coach Federation

2016 ICF Global Coaching Study: Executive Summary

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The Final Report

This summary report has presented the main findings from the 2016 ICF Global Coaching Study. Detailed analysis and statistics
can be obtained from the Final Report.
The topics included in the Final Report are as follows:
The Coaching Continuum
Training and Credentialing
The Client
Interaction Between Coach Practitioner and Client
The Size and Scope of the Profession
Summary Business Indicators
Key Issues and Future Trends
To purchase the Final Report, visit Coachfederation.org/2016study.

International Coach Federation

2016 ICF Global Coaching Study: Executive Summary

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